Single-player video games and video games that have a single-player mode represent a large portion of the video game market. Single-player games are fun to play, but can be less competitive than their multiplayer counterparts. Additionally, single player games have less of a social component, which may be a desired feature for many video game players and spectators. Moreover, as electronic sports, or esports, are becoming an increasingly popular form of gaming, competition, and entertainment, current instantiations of single-player games are less amenable to being implemented in esports as their multiplayer counterparts.
Currently, for example, single-player games and video games with a single-player mode (hereinafter referred to collectively as single-player games) enable an individual player to make progress within a game, including completing missions, gaining experience, defeating enemies, leveling up, setting records for a number of incapacitations, and setting records for time-based challenges. However, it is difficult to compare one's progress with that of another in the spirit of competition. For example, a player of single-player game could share with their friend the number of points obtained or a personal record for completing a mission, and the friend could subsequently try to beat the player's number of points or personal record. However, much of the intensity and fun are lost in this disconnected and subdued form of competition. For example, the player will not know how the friend played the single-player game outside of the results. Moreover, this disconnected form of competition does not offer much in the way of spectator engagement, since it involves simply comparing a result (e.g., number of points or personal record) of a player with that of a friend. What is desired, therefore, is a technological platform that enables competition between players of single-player games that interested spectators can view as a head-to-head competition.
It is in this context that embodiments arise.